Outreach is the key

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One of the hallmarks of a welfare state is the way it designs social security measures of the workers in the unorganised sector as a subset of the overarching objective of delivering benefits to the people below the poverty line. The Centre has taken up a laudable initiative of making a database for workers – e-SHRAM – where all unorganised sector workers would be registered for efficient distribution of social security benefits. The portal was launched in end-August and since the beginning it has been a hit with lakhs of workers enrolling.

But to make the initiative really meaningful across this vast land of ours, the government should not depend on online registrations. Online registrations are hassle-free and the government does not have to deploy manpower and resources to enroll individuals. It is also more convenient for the workers since they do not have to visit an office and queue up with documents. However, it presupposes two things. One, the worker has access to a smooth internet connection. Two, he/she is literate enough to navigate the portal and enrol successfully. The registration process would also not depend only on existing databases though it can be tallied with database. There is no income criteria for registering on the portal but the individual should not be paying income tax. Given that there are only a few crore income taxpayers, the huge number of workers who can be enrolled as unorganised sector workers. If an individual registered on the portal meets with an accident, he/she will be paid Rs 2 lakh on death or permanent disability and Rs 1 lakh on partial disability. The workers would also get a Universal Account Number that would make the portability of social security schemes possible.

Given the enormity of the challenge, the government should enlist the help of the panchayats to reach out to all towns and villages of the country in the far-flung areas to make the database comprehensive. The pandemic has wreaked havoc in the country driving millions out of job and across the BPL line. There are numerous incidences of individuals moving to the unorganised sector for a living. The portal has to capture the latest demographic details arising out of the great collective misfortune.